Owaka

Owaka is a totally unique tufted product in a dense cut and loop finish using New Zealand felted wools in a customer’s choice of colour, proudly made and designed here in Christchurch. This compact yet semi-shaggy style delivers warmth and textural depth to enrich many home spaces and commercial fit outs. The design was inspired by the landscape of South Otago in New Zealand, dominated by ranges and basins that were cleared of bush to make way for pasture. The owner and founder of CRONZ, John Wyma, was brought up in the Catlins area of South Otago and the memories of this landscape inspired a textural rug design reflecting its form but softening the impact of what was once a harsh environment and is now a rich green pastural land. Owaka is a small town in South Otago close to where John spent his childhood so it appeared to be an appropriate name to bring together the inspiration and the finished product. This design is unique in the world, due to the specialised machinery that is able to tuft the yarn in a cut & loop structured format. The Owaka style was a result of many “trial and error” attempts, both in yarn types and tufting procedures, but finally producing a product that is both one of a kind and encapsulates part of the life journey of the developer.

Since Owaka’s release to the market, it has proven to be a rug texture of choice for many. It has unique visual characteristics as the structure of cut & loop stitches add the third dimension to it. Unlike other existing and more common rug finishes, it is uneven yet consistent and the 3D stitch formation results in subtle light refelction. The wool in its felted form adds softness and luxury underfoot. No matter what colour/s the Owaka is made in, the highly textural finish assures it is going to be a statement piece in the room. As John says: “We wanted to create an interesting texture that is unlike anything else in the rug world and we dare to say we managed to achieve this with Owaka.”